Residents in one Missouri neighborhood are taking matters into their own hands after spotting at least one coyote in their neighborhood.

Joyce L. Miller

Residents in the St. Moritz neighborhood off Route KK are taking matters into their own hands after seeing at least one coyote in their neighborhood.

They believe the coyote(s) may be responsible for killing a number of family pets.

They are hoping some coyote hunters can help them rid their neighborhood of the animals. The hunters will be in town this weekend, using recorded animal sounds to lure the coyote(s) in to shoot them.

Dogs and cats have been disappearing at an alarming rate, said Victor Herbert, who has lost two small dogs. He says he has seen a coyote wandering through his yard in the early morning hours before the sun rises.

Herbert’s neighbor had an encounter with what looked like a coyote after watching the animal attack their small dog and drag it off.

The coyote ran across the yard with the small animal and was headed into a stand of trees.

The dog’s owner chased the coyote, threw sticks and stones at it and created enough noise that the animal dropped the small dog and took off into the woods, leaving its prey behind.

Herbert said he tried trapping the coyote. Instead, he ended up with a raccoon. He attributed the sightings to all the construction going on in the area, forcing the coyotes out of their natural habitat.

The coyote sightings have been reported to the Missouri Department of Conservation. An agent has been out to visit, Herbert said. Osage Beach Police Sgt. Arlyne Page says the department gets calls every now and then about coyotes wandering into residential areas.

The most recent complaint she received was from a woman on Horseshoe Bend.

A healthy coyote can resemble a large, light-colored German shepherd. Coyotes are generally more reclusive than other animals such as wolves, she said.

According to Missouri Department of Conservation enforcement supervisor Darrell Walden, complaints about coyotes are not that common in the lake area. The department receives more calls about foxes that often wander into residential neighborhoods, he said.